Kroger (NYSE:KR) Reaches New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $59.60 and last traded at $59.59, with a volume of 210661 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $57.39.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KR has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $62.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Kroger in a report on Friday, October 18th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price objective for the company. Melius Research initiated coverage on Kroger in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $55.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Kroger from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Kroger from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kroger currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $60.09.

Kroger Trading Up 4.1 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.24 billion, a PE ratio of 15.03, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.48. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $55.39 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $53.90.

Kroger (NYSE:KR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 12th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.02. Kroger had a return on equity of 28.54% and a net margin of 1.86%. The firm had revenue of $33.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.96 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Kroger Co. will post 4.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Kroger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.14%. Kroger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Kroger news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 14,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $784,715.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Kroger news, VP Brian W. Nichols sold 6,922 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.80, for a total value of $386,247.60. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 14,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $784,715.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Valerie L. Jabbar sold 3,000 shares of Kroger stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.91, for a total value of $167,730.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 74,084 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,142,036.44. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 12,932 shares of company stock valued at $721,243. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kroger

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of KR. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S increased its position in shares of Kroger by 39.9% during the 1st quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 34,311 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,960,000 after purchasing an additional 9,788 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in Kroger by 1,401.7% in the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,598 shares of the company’s stock valued at $148,000 after acquiring an additional 2,425 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 22,888 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,308,000 after buying an additional 746 shares during the period. Csenge Advisory Group lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 4,610 shares of the company’s stock worth $263,000 after buying an additional 191 shares during the period. Finally, Empirical Finance LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kroger by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 24,264 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,386,000 after buying an additional 793 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.93% of the company’s stock.

Kroger Company Profile

The Kroger Co operates as a food and drug retailer in the United States. The company operates combination food and drug stores, multi-department stores, marketplace stores, and price impact warehouses. Its combination food and drug stores offer natural food and organic sections, pharmacies, general merchandise, pet centers, fresh seafood, and organic produce; and multi-department stores provide apparel, home fashion and furnishings, outdoor living, electronics, automotive products, and toys.